Dear all,

This is where it all ends, the ship docked at 0800 o’clock this morning at Fairlie in the Clyde, and we are currently in the process of unloading all our kit, including all the various samples that were collected out on the ridge. It was a pleasure to read Monty’s last dayprogramme, ending with the obligatory: that’s all folks! I can’t help feeling slightly blue as all members will spread to every corner of the country (some abroad).

Thursday’s RPC (request the pleasure of your company), was a nice social event in which Monty invited everyone to a gathering at the ship bar, which was a nice opportunity for crew and scientists to discuss the findings of the cruise over a drink or two.
Last night EK60 calibration of Arran went surprisingly smoothly, my team mates and I finished work at around 0300 o’clock, after having arrived at the location at 1430. Yesterdays events involved the final CTD of the cruise, and the excitement of the PML team (especially Gavins) was infectious, rubbing off on all of us. The good mood was unfortunately ruined by Birkir who, by the way, is still sulking a bit because he lost his hat off the side of the ship (see picture of Birkir with no hat).

Birkir (with no hat), Tom (with hat) and Martin (with hat AND cosy ear flaps).

We also saw the deployment of the rescue boat, allowing for the photographer David Shale to get some footage of the ship from the sea. A lucky few were thus able to make across to shore, on the beautiful island of Aran. Reliable sources tell me that the main attraction was the local chocolate shop. The rest of us could only watch in envy as our colleagues were setting foot on land for the first time.

As this is the last entry of this cruises’ blog I hope that all you folks back home have enjoyed reading about our adventures. We’ve certainly enjoyed sharing our work, and look forward to next year, so please do watch this space for news about the 2008 ECOMAR Discovery cruise!

Best,

Tom Bech Letessier
PhD student, PERG, University of St Andrews